1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device for removing hypodermic needles from syringes and for distorting the hypodermic needles to provide an effective and safe means of discarding used hypodermic needles.
2. Description of the related art including information disclosed under 37 CFR .sctn..sctn. 1.97-1.99
Heretofore, a number of devices have been proposed for safely and effectively destroying hypodermic needles rendering them incapable of a second use. Examples of some of these devices are disclosed in the following U.S. Patents:
______________________________________ U.S. Pat. No. Patentee ______________________________________ 5,138,125 Salesses 5,138,124 Kirk et al. 4,969,379 Taylor et al. 4,531,437 Szablak et al. 4,404,881 Hanifl 4,332,323 Reenstierna 4,275,628 Greenhouse 4,255,996 Choksi et al. 3,800,644 Garvis et al. 3,785,233 Robinson 3,683,733 Johan et al. 3,404,593 Arcarese et al. ______________________________________
The Salesses U.S. Pat. No. 5,138,125 discloses an electrical needle destruction device. The device has a receiver assembly, pivotally connected to the housing. The receiver assembly includes a support arm with an opening and an open channel. When the receiver assembly is in an initial vertical position, a needle is inserted through the opening into the open channel. The receiver assembly is rotated to a second position whereby the needle is brought into contact with electrodes causing the needle to be destroyed. The support arm also has a plunger near the opening extending through a passageway which is perpendicular to the open channel. When a downward force is applied to the plunger the needle hub is immobilized. While the hub is immobilized, the syringe may then be detached from the hub.
The Kirk et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,138,124 discloses an apparatus for destroying hypodermic needles. The housing of the device has a guide member for guiding the hypodermic needle into contact with a stationary electrode element and a rotating electrode wheel. When the needle contacts both the electrode wheel and the electrode element a circuit is completed which causes the needle to immediately become heated to a temperature greater than the needle's melting point. The needle is turned into powdered debris which falls into a compartment of the container.
The Taylor et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,969,379 discloses a disposable needle and syringe destructor unit. The unit has an aperture for receiving the entire syringe. The syringe sits horizontally inside the unit on a V-shaped stop member which accurately positions the syringe under a piston. The piston is then brought down upon the syringe, forcing the syringe into contact with the cutting dyes. The syringe is cut into pieces which fall to the bottom of the container. When the container is full, the entire unit can be disposed of.
The Szablak et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,531,437 discloses a rotary needle and syringe destructor. This device has a base housing and an upper closure body. The housing has an open side to receive a receptacle which collects the severed needles. The receptacle is automatically locked in a closed position upon removal from the housing. The upper body has a rotary die member for severing the needles and syringes. The rotary die member has an outer die sleeve and an inner die core. The sleeve and core have registered openings at the top to accept the needle and the hub of the syringe. The sleeve and the core also have smaller registered openings at the bottom to allow only the needle to pass through. The core is then rotated, causing the die and core openings to become misaligned and thus severing the needle from the hub and the hub from the syringe. The severed needle and hub fall into a receptacle, which when full can be removed, discarded and replaced.
The Hanifl U.S. Pat. No. 4,404,881 discloses a needle and syringe destroyer. The device has a receptacle and a base mounted on the receptacle. The base includes a shearing means and a disposal means. The shearing means has a pair of guillotine shears each having a movable shear blade. Static shear blades having apertures for syringe and needle entry are also mounted on the base. The needle is positioned within the apertures. The movable shear blades are then activated by a hand manipulable lever, bringing the movable blades into contact with the needle close to cutting edges of the fixed blades, and thus severing the needle. The severed portions of the needle fall directly into the receptacle. Remaining portions of the syringe barrel may be deposited in the disposal means which is located on the receptacle and comprises an opening and a movable closure lid.
The Reenstierna U.S. Pat. No. 4,332,323 discloses a destruction device for injection needles. The destruction device has an outer sleeve with a bottom and a concentric inner sleeve. Blades are fixedly attached to the inner surface of the outer sleeve and are pivotally retained by the inner sleeve. When a needle is inserted into the device for destruction, the needle sits within the inner sleeve. The assembly is then struck or pressed against some object at the bottom, forcing the outer sleeve towards the inner sleeve and forcing the blades to pivot and engage the needle, thus bending or breaking the needle.
The Greenhouse U.S. Pat. No. 4,275,628 discloses a syringe and needle destroyer. This needle destroyer has a horizontally movable severing means having an upper blade and a lower blade. The blades are moved horizontally when a lever is actuated. The needle and hub portion of the syringe are inserted into an opening on top of a cover of a receptacle. When the lever is actuated the blades move horizontally, and the lower blade severs the needle from the hub while the upper blade severs the hub from the syringe. The severed needle and hub then fall into the bottom of the receptacle.
The Choksi et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,255,996 discloses a needle destroyer with an improved mechanical advantage. The device has a separable housing having a top portion and a bottom portion. An opening in the top portion is provided to accept the needle and hub. Hub and cannula cutters laterally slide relative to the hub center and simultaneously sever both the hub and the cannula in one motion. The mechanical advantage to the cannula cutter is provided by joining the hub and cannula cutters at a slidable joint and by providing non-coaxial pivot points for the cutters. The severed hub and cannula fall into a box located in the bottom portion of the housing.
The Garvis et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,800,644 discloses a destruction and disposal device for hypodermic syringes. A syringe or multiple syringes are placed in the feeding tray. The syringes are automatically, one by one, fed into a cutting section of the device. The cutting section has a plurality of cutting blades having a fixed set of blades and a movable set of blades. The movable set is capable of moving into and out of a shearing relationship with the fixed set. The movable blades are then actuated, cutting the syringe into a plurality of pieces. The pieces are then dispensed into a collection bin located beneath the cutting section. The entire process of feeding, cutting and dispensing is controlled by a motor control unit of the device.
The Robinson U.S. Pat. No. 3,785,233 discloses a cutting punch for destroying hypodermic syringes. The punch comprises a base, a standard extending from the base and an overhang portion over the base. The base is fitted with a die retainer having a cutter with a groove at the front and the rear. The grooves are of semi-cylindrical shape and serve to support the hypodermic syringe in a substantially position when inserted into the die. The overhang portion is bored with a cylindrical passage to accommodate a plunger having cutting edges. The plunger is pressed downwardly to effect the cutting operation, thus severing the needle and the hub of the syringe. The severed portions fall into a drawer positioned below the base.
The Johan et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,683,733 discloses an apparatus for destroying hypodermic needles. The device has a rotatable cylindrical inner cutting body having a bore. The inner body is positioned within a stationary outer cutting body which cooperates with the inner body and has a bore with sharp cutting surfaces. In the initial position the two bores are aligned. A needle is inserted through the bores of the inner and outer bodies. The inner bore is then rotated so that the needle is severed along the cutting surfaces of the outer body.
The Arcarese et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,404,593 discloses a hypodermic syringe destroyer having a cabinet with a removable container. A cutting means is provided comprising a housing which is located on top of the container having two axially aligned apertures, a movable member with a handle and a pair of arms, and shearing elements attached to the arms of the movable member. The hypodermic syringe is inserted into the housing and through the apertures, then the handle is operated so as to bring the shearing elements into contact with the syringe, thus severing the syringe. The severed portions of the syringe then fall into the removable container.